Freddy Fender

Singer, songwriter, and guitarist Freddy Fender was a Grammy-winning, chart-topping country artist whose merger of country, blues, and rockabilly was distinguished by its strong Latin sensibility. After rising to stardom as a soloist in the mid-1970s behind hits like "Before the Next Teardrop Falls," "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights," and "Secret Love," he was known as a member of the celebrated '90s supergroups Texas Tornados and Los Super Seven. Born Baldemar Huerta to a family of migrant laborers in San Benito, Texas, on June 4, 1937, Fender began playing guitar early in his...